Introducing The 2019 LVMH Prize Semifinalists

The LVMH Prize has its 2019 shortlist. Twenty designers representing 15 countries were selected from a field of 1,700 applicants. Delphine Arnault, the executive vice president of Louis Vuitton and the founder of the Prize, noted that the designers who made the cut this year have a wide range of experience, with some just starting out, and others more established. Sustainability is increasingly becoming a factor for those on the list, and after last year’s win by Masayuki Ino of Doublet gender neutral collections are also well represented. But it isn’t trends that LVMH is looking for. “All these observations come in hindsight,” Arnault told Vogue. “The most important thing when we select the designers is their talent and creativity.” Of particular note are the two designers from Africa, a continent that often goes under-represented at international competitions such as this. They are Thebe Magugu from South Africa and Kenneth Ize from Nigeria. London’s Richard Malone, a finalist in the Prize’s fourth edition, is the sole returning designer. Read more at Vogue.